Jun 16, 2010

Status Update

Thanks to everybody for your support and sticking with me even though I haven't been blogging/commenting AT ALL. Sort of reflects my running. Anyway, just an update here to let you know what's been going on and what I'm planning.

Last week I had a stress test, lung test and more blood work. Got all of the results back and they were negative. Negative in terms of medical issues but I think the stress test results were positive as far as how well I performed. Make sense? As clear as mud? I had to lay down and pedal, not unlike a recumbent bike. My target HR for my age was 150. My starting HR was 47. Most people are done in 6-10 minutes. After about 6 minutes in she said I was in the 90's. I might be here awhile. The nurse and technician said one a week or so somebody might go for 15 minutes before their HR gets high enough. I was at about 135 at that point. They also said they remember somebody going for 21 minutes once. Well, I didn't quite have to go that long, by 18 minutes the pedalling had become quite difficult and my legs were burning much more that the effort my heart was putting forward. Finally at 19 minute I reached my goal. THAT was a workout.

The next day I put in a solid 5 miles that felt good and I was optimistic and thinking that I turned a corner. Of course my next 4 miler was incredibly difficult and slow and I was back at square one again. Ugh.

So now I might abandon my streak of marathons. My wife thinks I might regret it if I do and thinks I should struggle through another one in a week and a half. By struggle through I'm thinking 4:30 or more. I'd love to hear all your thoughts. Do I keep it up, try to get through a couple marathons in hopes that things turn around or do I just rest up and get back on track when I feel ready for it?

13 comments:

That is a tough one.... If you think you can power through it and finish, I agree with your wife, you might regret letting the streak go BUT if you really aren't feeling up to par (or maybe even sub-par), it might not be worth it streak or mo streak. I guess you are the only one who can answer that one... BTW I love that your "struggle through it" time is only 15 minutes slower than my PR! I am a little jealous!

Mmmh, agree with Karen here. I say test it with a short and then a longer run this weekend. Something like 4 miles the first and then 10 miles the next day, if you feel awful then let it go. And give the 1 marathon per month a new shot next year. Health is more important than this goal in my opinion.

Hi Az,Welcome back! You have a tough choice to make. I think that you need to do what you think is best. I know it is hard to run in a race and not think about time. My last race I tried like hell not to let the clock ticking get me down:) Good luck with your decision and take care!

So you hadn't been running for a long time, then did a HARD 19-minute workout. And 2 days later your legs felt tired and you had a difficult run. That is normal! Legs are supposed to feel tired 2 days after a hard workout (unless you're 20 years old). So don't worry about that.As for the marathon, I am of the opinion that you shouldn't run a marathon unless you are ready to run a marathon. And are eager to run a marathon. I don't care about streaks. Ok, if it was the 12th of 12 marathons, run it. Otherwise, get healthy and ready to run and then start a new streak.

Gosh, I have to be honest...backing off will most probably bring you huge relief and your body will be renewed. These long races take a toll on you physically and mentally and sometimes, it just takes some time off to rejuvenate. You don't want to abandon this altogether due to getting injured, tired of it and burned out. I've cut down to three marathons this year and fewer races but I've upped my training so I can still feel excited and happy about racing and confident with the training. I hope this didn't come off as negative. I think I'm just in a practical stage of life right now. Best of luck with your decision!

Hi AZ...I'm not sure what to tell you, I've been down the 4:30 road and it's as hard, if not harder, than the 3:45 road cuz you're out there longer. But if the streak is important to you and the dr. said it was ok, and you're ok with a slower time, then I think you should go for it! Really, though, you gotta follow your heart!! Good luck. Can't wait to hear what you decide!

Glad to hear you are doing okay. I don't know what to say but I guess I think your heart and lungs are more important than a streak. You are young and so strong- you can try again if you decide to take a break. If they think something is wrong and just haven't figured it out yet, I would stop. If they don't think anything is wrong, then I would go with your gut. I do agree with the other commentors though... having run a 5 hour marathon I can tell you that it's not as fun as you would think. Good luck- I'm rooting for you no matter what you decide!

Tough call either way. On one hand a fun race might jumpstart your mojo, but then again it could also just bury the funk more too. I'd see how i felt a few days before the race I guess? Are you already registered, and it's just a matter of going or not? Since your med tests came back ok I wouldn't rule it out... But burn-out (if that's what it is) can really make you depressed about running, at least in my opinion. Good luck?